Sunday, 9 April 2017

The Scareship Letter

I love
scareship stories almost as much as I love weasel stories, so I was overjoyed
when I found the following in the Irish News and Belfast Morning News of 5
January 1910.

We are
disposed to feel sceptical about news of weird and wonderful “shapes”
manoeuvring in the higher regions of the atmosphere. Last year a London paper
published sensational stories about the performance of one Dr. Boyd in a highly
navigable dirigible balloon over Belfast and around the rear slopes of Cave
Hill. No one saw Dr. Boyd; and his balloon never existed. Perhaps he did not
exist himself. But his alleged exploits were nothing more visionary than aerial
monsters which certain Belfast citizens of considerable credibility in other
respects stated they had seen hovering threateningly over the Lisburn Road.

Remembering
these things, we print the following communication from a correspondent in
Drumnaherk, Letterbarrow, Co. Donegal, with due reserve. It is dated “Sunday,
January 2nd”:-

“While two
young men named Hughey Monaghan and Willie McBride were returning home from a
Christmas Party in the early hours of Sunday morning, they were terrified by a
strange noise which broke upon their ears. ‘It resembles the vibration of an
engine,’ said Hughey. At first they were not able to locate the place; but
after a few seconds they had no difficulty. The sound came as if from the
clouds; and, looking up, they saw a huge monster moving slowly in the air.

“Asked as
to what it looked like, the more intelligent of the two said – ‘It looked like
a big cigar with wings. I could see it quite distinct, as it was an exceedingly
clear morning; for the moon was shining brightly.’ Asked as to what height it
was and what direction did it move in, he said – ‘It was within a gunshot and
moved northwards.’

“This is
the third airship that has been seen in this part of the County Donegal, and
the peaceful inhabitants are greatly alarmed.”

Our
correspondent, writing on Monday, sends the following addendum to his
awe-inspiring communication –

“A
mysterious letter has been found in the vicinity where the airship has been
seen, supposed to have dropped from the occupants of the airship. The letter is
written in a foreign language, and will be returned to the owner in due
course.”

But this is
“easier said than done.” If the people of Drumnaherk can locate the owner of
the document, that is to say, “the occupant of the airship,” they will have
solved the mystery. Lord Charles Beresford, Lord Roberts, and other
scaremongers are wasting their time in England. If the British Empire is to be
saved they must speedily “commission” one of the Bleriot aeroplanes just
purchased by the Government to make a flight to the Co. Donegal. Lord Cawdor’s
mistake is now evident. The Germans have no intention of establishing a naval
base in Belfast; they intend to build a huge fortress, and within it
manufacture destructive aerial warships at Drumnaherk.

As to the
other incidents referenced in the article: a few months earlier, at about 5:30
am on Tuesday, 6 July 1909, an airship passed over the townland of Mountcharles,
in County Donegal. And despite the early hour, thanks to the actions of a local
Paul Revere (minus the horse) who called people out of their houses, there were
many witnesses who saw the “cigar-shaped” airship and heard “the machinery
working and the human sound of the occupants.”

So far I’ve
failed to find anything on the other incident. Can anyone help?